


We Keep It Undercover

by NavigationByAtlas



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: After S2, Kinda, Lance is sad, M/M, Plot What Plot, Post Season 2, Undercover AU, but like, but theyre hardly mentioned, galra keith confirmed, help ur bf, homesick Lance, i have no plans or self control, im looking at you keith, its a klance fic ok, keith is Concerned™, keith is pan, lance is bi, like shallura and hunay, maybe a slowburn, maybe i'll have normal chapter lengths this time, no plot we wing it like shiros eyeliner, pining keith amirite, seriously someone help lance, there are lowkey side ships, this is only the second fic ive started on ao3, we'll see, wowie another klance fic
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-02-10
Updated: 2018-05-05
Packaged: 2018-09-23 09:15:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,758
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9649373
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NavigationByAtlas/pseuds/NavigationByAtlas
Summary: Lance and Keith are sent on an undercover stealth mission of sorts to Earth in order to eliminate some surveillance tech that's been planted by the Galra. Basically, a Klance undercover high school au.





	1. Descent

"Paladins!" Lance jerked awake gracelessly at the loud shriek of Allura's voice over the intercom. Groaning, he scrambled for his shirt, pulling it on. When he finally made it out to where the rest of the group was gathered, Allura began filling the team in on their mission, hardly giving Lance a moment to collect himself. "This mission is urgent. This one is going to have to be a stealth mission. We know that the Galra have made their way to Earth's solar system before, but we have recently found a faint signal emitted from something on your planet. That being said, if we attract attention to Earth, the Galra might become suspicious and launch a full scale attack on you home planet." Allura shuddered, no doubt remembering the attack made on her own home planet. When she had regained her composure, Allura continued. "One more thing. Thanks to Pidge, we have determined the approximate location of whatever is emitting a signal, and the location is within a five mile radius of a school. We need two of you to go down to earth's surface and work undercover at the school to get as much information as possible about the surroundings and history of the town"

This was a lot of information to take in for waking up five minutes ago.

When Lance, finally caught up to the rest of his team, he barely registered his surroundings aside from the fact the Keith was standing near him. Very near. Choosing to ignore that little detail, He spoke up. "So... who's going down to Earth?"

Immediately, Lance regretted waking up that morning.

If the pointed looks given to him and Keith simultaneously weren't enough, Shiro began explaining the reasoning behind why the most dysfunctional pairing of paladins was going on an incognito mission, alone. "Anyone going with Pidge would have too obvious of an age gap, as she's by far the youngest of the group." Pidge muttered a comment about being the smartest, too, under her breath. "Alternatively, Coran, Allura and I are all noticeably older than high school age, not to mention my prosthetic being a bit on the obvious side of things. And Hunk isn't always the best under pressure. So, if you two can manage to work together, you're our best shot." Lance couldn't argue. It made perfect sense for him and Keith to head down alone, and whether he liked it or not, Lance didn't have much of a choice. So, rather than sit in the uncomfortable silence following Shiro's explanation, he let out a huff and asked, "When do we start?"

000*000

As it turns out, Lance regretted a lot from that day. It was bad enough that he had woken up in such an unfavourably manner, but now he had to go down to Earth undercover. The worst part? He wasn’t allowed contact with his family. It was an undercover mission, after all, and he couldn’t risk the entire planet for a family reunion. Lance wasn’t an idiot, he knew that. He understood. Hell, he’d even go as far as to say he agreed. But, God, did it hurt. He was so close. Only a few thousand miles. A few thousand! That was nothing compared to the distances he’d traveled in the last twenty four hours alone. So close to his mamá. His two older brothers, Thomas and Michael, and his baby sister, Marisa, who had only been three years old when he had left, however long ago that had been. His abuela, who had lived with them since his abuelo had passed, a year after Marisa was born. His papá, whose grave was right beside his own father’s. Tía Maya and Uncle Ron, who Maya had met in America. Tío Angel and Tía Sara, who never missed a school performance or a game. Who had cried at the airport when he’d left for Galaxy Garrison, just like their seven year old son, who had grown up with Lance all his life. He missed them all, so much. 

But he had a job to do. So Lance bit back his emotions, shoving them deep into the recesses of his mind, where he could forget about them until the mission was complete. He had made up his mind before he’d even gotten to Earth. Lance would protect them, no matter what.

000*000

Lance had been quiet the entire trip to Earth. It wasn’t like him, to be so withdrawn, and once they’d landed, Keith almost didn’t get a chance to stop him before exiting the pod, he’d moved so fast. “Hey, Lance, wait up.” Lance smiled, so naturally and blindingly bright that Keith almost forgot something was wrong. “What’s up, Keith? Something wrong?” He sounded so nonchalant, it made Keith wonder just how often Lance hid his emotions. He made a mental note to ask him about that, too, later on. “Are you gonna be okay? You seemed… upset on the way here.” Lance turned away, making a show of rolling his eyes before opening up the pod. “I’m fine, Keith. I’m always fine. Just excited. We’re back home, after all. You know what that means.” Lance waggled his eyebrows, facing back at Keith with a sly smile. “It means pretty, high school, human girls and coffee.” 

Before Keith could respond, Lance had hopped out of the pod, landing on the soft, green grass in the woods they had taken shelter in. The duo couldn’t have anyone finding them out and compromising the mission. So, they activated Pidge’s cloak and headed off, both dressed in street clothes. Keith insisted Lance keep his bayard with him, while Keith kept his blade, the Marmora blade that he could carry around in it’s shrunken form. Lance had pitched a bit of a fit, claiming they were home, Keith. They didn’t need any weapons. Or, whose gonna attack us in a human high school? The way Lance had said the word, human, as though he was now as alien to his home planet as Allura or Coran. Or Keith. 

It wasn’t until they had made it to the school that they realised: it’s Sunday.


	2. Language Barrier

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lance is bilingual. Keith doesn't know Spanish. 
> 
> (Disclaimer: Neither do I, aside from like, a year and a half of self-teaching with an app and a freshman high school course. HOWEVER, I do use everything I said in this chapter irl, so...)

“Great. Now what?” Lance scowled at the locked door of the school. He took hold of the handle, giving the door a violent jolt. Sighing loudly, he let go of the door, turning to Keith. “Any ideas, hotshot?” Lance didn’t realize how annoyed he’d sounded until the words left his mouth. He hadn’t meant to direct it towards Keith, but there was no way for Keith to know that. Lance got a glare in return. He held up his hands defensively. “Sorry, sorry. Just a bit frustrated.” Keith huffed, dropping his crossed arms to his sides. What a stupid thing to be so worked up about. ‘We could always break in…” Keith went to reach for his knife. Lance caught his hand, stopping him. “Busting into a high school isn’t exactly laying low, Keith. Let’s do something else. How about we explore the town? Gather more info?” Keith gave in, letting Lance guide his hand away from his blade, though not without a disappointed pout. Lance chuckled under his breath. “What first then, hm?”

As it turns out, without any human currency of any kind, there was not much the pair could do. So, they settled for exploring. Lance talked most of the time they wandered, comparing things to the home he grew up in and describing his family. Keith made sure to commit as many details as possible to memory, which wasn’t very difficult considering his lack of distraction. Keith caught himself smiling or staring at Lance multiple times during their adventure, and let his mind come up with all of the different ways it could turn into something else. How many ways could the context of their walk through town on a quiet Sunday afternoon be different? Better? Lance flashed him a grin, laughing at a joke he’d just made. Eventually, the two found themselves at a small playground, surprisingly lacking in children. Two small boys played in a sandbox on the far side of the playground, rubbing sand in each other’s hair and giggling at the mess they’d made of themselves. Keith smiled fondly, reminded of his and Lance’s closeness as of late. They’d still go at it at times, yelling and getting caught up in petty arguments, but it was better. Keith was happy.

\--

By nightfall, Keith and Lance still hadn’t figured out a place to sleep, so the pair decided to crash in the small pod they had taken from the castle. Space inside was limited, so the paladins slept closer than they would’ve liked. As the sky dimmed, a comfortable silence settled in the pod. Lance broke it. 

“Hey, Keith?”

“Yeah?”

“What are we gonna do tomorrow?” Keith took a moment to think about that, forming a rough plan of sorts. He realized that the mission involved a lot of socializing. He’d leave that bit to Lance. 

“I guess, we just go to high school. Ask around about the town and see what we find out.” He heard Lance shuffle around, facing Keith in the darkness. 

“Okay. Goodnight, Keith.” It took a moment for Keith to respond, but when he did it was a soft, simple, “'Night.” The two fell asleep.

\--

Keith woke before the sun, most likely still on the Altean sleep schedule, to find Lance a lot closer than he had been last night. If his position and the expression on his face was anything to go by, it had been a restless sleep. Lance’s hand was clutching tightly to one of Keith’s and his brow furrowed, lips coming together in a slight pout. Keith didn’t know how Lance usually slept, but this probably wasn’t good. Gently tugging his hand free, he sat up, a hand on Lance’s shoulder, and woke the boy. His eyes cracked open, full of emotion and sleep. His blue eyes were swimming with so many things it was hard for Keith to distinguish them. He recognized grief, though. He’d seen the same emotion in his reflection when Shiro had disappeared. Grief and sadness. What Keith didn’t find in Lance’s eyes, however, was the anger he’d felt. Lance’s emotions were gentle but strong, and Keith wondered for a moment if the boy was even capable of feeling genuine anger towards anyone. He doubted it.

“Keith?” Lance was conscious now and had blinked the emotion away, displaying nothing but his usual calm, cheerful demeanor. Keith realized he was staring. 

“Sorry. We should probably get ready. We have school today.” Lance smiled him. What a strange notion for the two, who had never attended anything like what they were about to walk into. Lance’s knowledge was limited to movies, and stories from his brothers.

Lance quickly learned that real high school was absolutely nothing like what he had seen Lindsay Lohan portraying in movies. The people in the school weren’t wild at all, really, with a few exceptions. Most of them kept to their own little group of friends, and some groups overlapped. Lance and Keith were noticed early on. The town was relatively small, so if you didn’t know someone, you knew of them. When the red and blue paladins had shown up randomly in the school, they attracted attention like it was a disease that preyed on the unusual. Or, that’s how Keith saw it. Lance was much more open to the questions and introductions, remembering names and faces easily and talking to strangers like old friends. Soon enough, there were about five people offering to show them around and comparing schedules.

Lance and Keith weren’t stupid, they had registered to the school, albeit falsely. They had to blend in, after all. The pair had every class but one together. They couldn’t stay together the whole day, otherwise, it could arouse suspicion or unwanted curiosity. So, their third class was spent apart. They each kept a small wristband on, for emergencies. They need only press a button and the other would be alerted, something similar to a pager. It made Keith feel better about this whole thing, to some degree.

Their first class was Gym. It was easy enough with the two having been trained relentlessly by Allura’s iron fist, and Shiro’s more literal one. Honestly, Shiro actually had a metal arm and Allura’s right hook was still ten times worse. Better? Depends on which end of it you were on. The lady was terrifying. Lance and Keith were assigned to a physical exam before they were sent to join the rest of the class. The exam was simple. They had to run a mile as fast as possible, do as many pushups as they could in five minutes, and give an idea of their flexibility. Keith learned a lot that morning, the first of which being that Lance was incredibly flexible. Not only that, but he was fast. While Keith’s lion was the fastest, and he was the agilest flier, Lance beat him by a long shot on the ground. Lance completed the mile with ease, hardly breaking a sweat but breathing heavily, in just under five minutes. Keith could only stand, astonished, through Lance’s teasing. Keith gained back his pride, however, when he did over double the number of pushups Lance did. While Lance had clocked out at about 30, breathing hard, Keith went so long that the teacher eventually told him to stop. He’d made it to about 65, give or take. He didn’t really count. Lance gawked, muttering something about Keith’s scrawny arms and that many pushups being impossible. Keith smirked at him in return.

When the two were dismissed to join the class, leaving a baffled teacher in their wake, they still had more than half the class left to talk to other students. Most of that was Keith following Lance around like a puppy while he chatted up the students, sending flirty winks that sent girls into fits of giggles and flashing a few of his trademark grins at even the boys, which, if  Keith noticed, he didn’t mention. He noticed.

“Lance?” Lance paused, excusing himself from a conversation with a particularly flustered boy.

“Yeah, buddy, what’s up?” Lance smiled. Keith blanked. He hadn’t thought that far ahead, he just wanted to get Lance away from the boy that was reciprocating all of his flirting. It made Keith’s head hurt to see them and he couldn’t figure out why.

“Keith?” Lance asked, and Keith blinked. 

“Oh, right. The class is almost over. What’s next?” Lance smiled, though Keith couldn’t, for the life of him, imagine why. He already knew what class was next. Why had he even asked?

“English,” Lance said. Keith nodded.

“Uh…  huh… And what, exactly, is so great about that?” Lance’s grin widened.

“English is fascinating, man! When I was learning it- about second grade, I think- I caught on real fast, but even now I still don’t understand everything. It’s cool to me, though, that I can not only speak but  _ think  _ in two different languages!” Lance can speak two languages? 

“You can speak two languages?” Keith asked, very clearly appalled. Lance snorted.

“Of course I can! I grew up right next to Varadero beach! My family is Cuban.” The swirls of emotion Keith had seen before were back but covered up again so fast, Keith might have been imagining it.

Keith smirked. “Oh yeah? Prove it.” In truth, Keith didn’t have a shred of doubt that Lance was bilingual. Lance blinked. “What?” Keith stepped towards him.

“I said, prove it. Say something in Spanish.” Lance scoffed. ”You really don’t believe-” He paused at Keith’s quirked eyebrow and unwavering smirk. “Oh, hohoho, I’m gonna wipe that look off your face,  _ príncipe  _ .” Keith wasn’t sure what that meant, but he’s pretty sure it was an insult. Keith’s smug look was replaced by a glare. 

“What’s the matter, _guapo_? Why are you scowling like that? _Tu_ _sonrisa es muy bonita_.” Lance’s voice was mocking with a hint of some emotion he couldn’t place. Keith full on glowered. 

“Lance, I have no idea what you just said, but I’m fairly certain you just insulted me, like, three times.” Lance just chuckled and patted the shorter boy’s head. 

“Nothing to worry your pretty little mullet about,  _ hermano.  _ ”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OK LOOK. I KNOW ITS BEEN OVER A YEAR OK IM AWARE BUT HEAR ME OUT.
> 
> Not only did I completely forget about this story, ngl, I've also had a Ch. 2 draft typed up and saved since the first installment of it. So, I had intended to continue, I just fuckin didn't. I am sO sorry. I'd like to mention, as well, that it is like 2 am rn and I read through all the comments I've gotten on this fic and???? Honestly, they motivated me to actually continue this fic. I had ignored it long enough to forget about it because I didn't know how I was gonna continue the story. BUT!!! Thanks to you, I'm determined to outline the next few chapters and maybe even, perhaps, God forbid, draw up a plot. 
> 
> AGAIN IM SO SORRY THIS TOOK LIKE 200-SOMETHING DAYS OK SSJBFKA FUCK I LOVE YOU ALL IM S O R R Y


	3. New Aquaintence

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Keith is both an actor and personable.

_Hermano._ Of all the Spanish Keith didn’t know, he’d seen enough movies, read enough books, to know what _that_ word meant and he’s pretty sure it isn’t a term of endearment you called a potential romantic partner. For a moment, Keith wondered why he was even contemplating it, frantically screaming at himself in his mind to rid it of the very idea. _Perish the thought, Keith, he’s your friend and partner and both of those things could become really awkward if this kind of thinking keeps up._

The two of them were back at school, going through the motions of class. It was their second class, English, with a rather snobbish, uptight teacher. When Keith arrived a mere two minutes after Lance, he found his jaw hitting the floor at the sight of Lance chatting the old man up easily, a smile on both of their faces. Keith forced himself to recover, wiping his astonishment off his face. _Just yesterday, the man had shouted at us every time we would so much as glance at each other, as though he could sense the intention for one of us to open our mouths and speak._

Lance caught sight of Keith and, if possible, his grin widened.

“Keith! I was just talking about you with Mr. E, here. I was telling him about the Ice Cream Incident.” Lance winked knowingly at Keith and continued retelling the story. “So, I had gotten strawberry, my favorite, and then he comes up, the biggest pout on his face, and grabs the scoop off my cone with his bare hand. Next thing I know, there’s strawberry ice cream melting down my shirt and smeared across my face. After that summer, we’ve been best friends.”

“How did such an attack become a close-knit friendship like this?” The greying man asked, eyes fixed on Keith and shining with mirth.

“Well,” Keith began, unsure. “After that, Lance went crying to his older sister, who came to yell at my older brother, who came to yell at me. Shiro took me to the ice cream shop, had me get a whole new scoop, and deliver it to Lance.”

“He brought me pistachio, of all things,” Lance said. “Which was absolutely horrible.”

“Hey, pistachio is my favorite!” Lance chuckled.

“Of course it would be _your_ favorite,” he teased, to which Keith responded with a glare that meant ' _and what’s_ that _supposed to mean?'_ Lance only laughed. The teacher clapped his hands together, smiling at the pair.

“It’s wonderful to see such close friends nowadays. All I ever see anymore are cell phones and ignorance, it's so nice to see two young men so engaged in their friendship.” He smiled wide and Keith could see the remnants of his breakfast in his teeth. Lance grinned back, however, so Keith offered a small smile of his own. “Thank you for sharing, boys. Now, let’s start class.”

 

\--

 

As it turned out, the second period was no good for getting any information as Mr. E was relentless in his offense to conversation during class. The pair had managed to get the man to warm up to them a small bit, thanks mostly to Lance’s natural charm, but that could only get them so far. The next class was the one Keith had been dreading most, however, because it was the only class he didn’t have Lance in, which meant he was on his own.

 _Okay, Keith,_ he thought, _riding solo this time. Nothing new, it’s not your first rodeo. You can manage this. Today, you just need to make one friend. One friend and you can call it good._ Keith’s third class was US History, which wasn’t so bad. The teacher, Ms. H, was fairly upbeat and engaging and otherwise left him alone. Because of his new arrival the day prior, she’d let him alone for the most part, encouraging him to make a friend with the same meddling expression he’d seen on Allura more often than he’d like; as though she knew something he didn’t. It was unsettling.

Keith steeled himself, though. He was only here for a small time, what’s the worst that could happen? _Wait,_ he thought. _Scratch that. More has happened in less time, who knows what could happen when there’s any chance of the galra nearby._

He pinched the bridge of his nose. The class’s chatter was a buzz in the air and it was beginning to give him a headache. His expression must be pure person-repellent, but at the moment, he couldn’t care less. Something knocked gently on his shoulder and he jerked, glaring at whoever’s fault it may have been. The boy grinned back sheepishly, a bottle of water in hand. He rubbed the back of his neck nervously.

“Can I help you?” Keith asked, far less angrily than he had expected. The boy cleared his throat.

“Um, well, you looked like you were having a hard time and I know you’re new here, it’s not hard to see that, and so I figured I’d come introduce myself since it seemed like you don’t have many friends just yet. Not that that’s a bad thing, but-” He cut off at Keith’s unimpressed expression. “Oh, right, yeah. My name’s Alby. Did you… want some water? Might help with that headache.” Keith managed an expression that wasn’t a glare or a frown or even a grimace.

“Sure. Thanks, Alby. I’m Keith,” he said, smiling the slightest bit at the boy as he accepted the water bottle and took a swig. The cool, fresh water was a welcome treat. He’d had nothing but the castle’s food goo and recycled water for far too long. What’s better, his headache did seem to be easing up. _Handy,_ he mused. _Maybe if we scrounge up some cash, Lance and I could bring some back to the ship._ He smiled at the idea.

Alby and Keith joked and chattered for the rest of the class. Keith pointedly ignored the knowing looks from Ms. H, choosing instead to exchange stories with Alby. he told him about Lance and the “Ice Cream Incident”, to which Alby laughed loud enough to earn a glance or two from their peers. _This is good,_ thought Keith. _Progress._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I KNOW IT'S BEEN 8 YEARS, PLEASE FORGIVE ME.  
> Comments and kudos are the only substitutes for motivation I have, they are the lifeblood that courses through me. I beg of you, give me that which I require.  
> I hope you enjoyed this chapter!

**Author's Note:**

> Wow, a decent sized chapter! :^0 
> 
> If you haven't seen it, I made another klance fic that has like 5 chapters, but they're all really short. Like, 300 words short. It's a soulmate au. If you read it, please leave some feedback! Thanks ;^0


End file.
